Chair with foot rest



June 1964 M. M. BOTTEMILLER 3,137,528

CHAIR WITH FOOT REST Filed June 15, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 June 15, 1954 M. M BOTTEMILLER 3, 37,5

CHAIR WITH FOOT REST Filed June 15, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 WVENTO/Q flmrazv/ldfiorrimamv Arm/W157 United States Patent 3,137,528 CHAIR WITH FOOT REST Merton M. Bottemiller, Wadena, Minn. Filed .l'nne 15, 1960, Ser. No. 36,204 Claims. (Cl. 297-429) The present invention is concerned with a chair having an adjustable foot rest.

An object of the present invention is to provide a chair with an extremely simple foot rest which can be readily moved to any of various desired positions.

A further object of the invention is to provide a chair having a foot rest with two forward legs and a rearwardly extending rod which is tiltably supported by the chair frame.

A further object of the invention is to provide such a chair and foot rest construction in which the rearwardly extending rod of the foot rest is supported by a support member journalled on a bar extending across the front of the chair beneath the seat portion thereof so that the foot rest may be adjusted transversely of the seat portion by reason of the slideability of the support member on the bar.

A further object of the invention is to provide such an arrangement in which the rearwardly extending rod of the foot rest extends through an aperture in a support member carried by the chair frame, the size of the aperture in this support member being sufficiently large with respect to that of the rod to permit the foot rest to be disposed at any of various angular positions wtih respect to the seat portion of the chair.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a double bar construction in the frame of the chair for holding the two front legs thereof in desired relative position, the upper bar of which acts to support the front of the seat portion of the chair, and the lower bar of which acts to pivotally support the rear of the foot rest.

A still further object of the invention is to provide such a chair in which the foot rest can be removed by the simple withdrawal of the rearwardly extending rod from the support member carried by the chair frame.

Other objects of the invention will be apparent from a consideration of the accompanying specification, claims, and drawing, of which:

FIGURE 1 is an elevational, perspective view of a chair embodying my improved foot rest construction;

FIGURE 2 is an elevational view, partly in section, showing the chair in either one of two adjusted positions;

FIGURE 3 is a top plan view of my chair showing the foot rest in either of two selected positions;

FIGURE 4 is a detailed view of a double bar construction for holding the front legs of the chair in position, for supporting the seat cushion, and for supporting the pivoted support member for the foot rest;

FIGURE 5 is a sectional view taken along the line 55 of FIGURE 4, showing a modification of the supporting rod for the rear of the root rest; and

FIGURE 6 is a section taken along the line 6-6 of FIGURE 4 to show the detail of the fastening means by which the front double bar construction is secured to a chair leg.

Referring to FIGURE 1, it will be seen that the chair comprises a conventional seat construction 11, a supporting frame 12, and a foot rest 13. The seat construction consists of a seat cushion 15, and a back cushion 16 secured thereto and held in a desired relative position by a frame mechanism not shown and forming no particular part of the invention. Secured to the back cushion 16 is a head cushion 17 removably and adjustably held to the back cushion 16 by an elastic strap 18 encircling the back cushion 16.

As best shown in FIGURES land 2, the frame construction 12 comprises two front legs 20 and 21, and two rear legs 22 and 23. The legs 21' and 23 on one side are joined together by an arm rest member 25 and by a frame 26 including an expanded metal portion 27. The legs 20 and 22 on the opposite side are similarly held together, and the same reference numerals have been applied to the corresponding elements for holding these legs together.

The two side leg assemblies are held together in the frontby a pair of .rods 28and 29 as best shown in FIG- URES. 4 and 6. In the rear, the legs 22 and 23 are held together by rods 30 and 31.

As best shown in FIGURES 4 and 6, the rods 28 and 29 are welded at one end to a bar 32. They are similarly welded at the opposite end to a similar bar, not shown. These bars serve to hold the rodsv 28 and 29 in the desired spaced relation; Each of the bars 32 fits within the outer extremities of a U-shaped bracket. These brackets 33 and 34 are welded to the chair legs 20 and 21 as shown in FIGURES 4 and 6. As best shown in FIGURE 6, the bar 32 is secured to the corresponding bracket by bolt 35 and nut 39, the bolt 36 extending through aligned apertures in the bar and bracket. With this arrangement, the

two legs 20 and 22 are held rigidly with respect to each Other. The bars 30 and 31 are fastened in a similar manner to legs 22 and 23 and thusserve to holdthe rear legs 22 and 23 together so that the entire frame structure 12 is held in rigidly assembled relation.

The upper rod 29 is curved, while the lower rod 28 is straight. Journalled to this lower rod 28 is a foot rest supporting member 39 having an aperture 40 therethrough, as best shown in FIGURE. 4. The foot rest supporting member .39 consists of two portions formed of a plastic such as polyethylene which are held together by suitable fasteningmeans 41, such as nuts and bolts. The upper rod 29 supports the front portion of the chair seat 15. Secured to the underside of the frame of the chair seat are two inverted U-shaped brackets 43. As best shown in FIGURES 4 and 5, these brackets straddle the rod 29 and are journalled thereon. Each bracket is held against removal from the rod 29 by a bolt 44 and a nut 45. It will be readily apparent that the brackets 43 serve to pivotally support the front portion of the seat portion 11. At its rear, the chair is provided with means for adjustably holding the back of the seat portion 11 in any of various selected positions. Carried by the frame of the cushion member 11 are a pair of brackets 46 provided with a series of notches 47. Only one of these. brackets is shown (in FIGURE 2), but it will be understood that a similar bracket is disposed on each side of the back cushion 16. A U-shaped bar 48 is pivotally secured to the legs 22 and 23 and is adapted to be'placed in any of the notches 47, depending upon the desired height of adjustment of the chair. It will readily be apparent that as the height of the rear of the chair is adjusted upwardly or downwardly, the chair assumes a reclining position to a lesser or greater extent, respectively.

Turning now to the novel foot rest of my invention, this will be seen to comprise a leg supporting cushion 50, to which is secured a forward leg assembly comprising a single rod bent to form two forward legs 51 and 52 joined by a connecting portion 53. Afurther U-shaped bracing member 55 is fastened to the two legs 51 and 52 by any suitable means, such as welding. The legs 51 and 52 are secured to the underside of-the leg cushion 50 by means of extensions of the legs which are secured to the, leg cushion by fasteners 56 and 60. The U-shaped member 55 is likewise fastened underneath the chair seat member in any suitable manner, such asbeing welded to a rod 58, which rod is in turn welded to the extensions of the legs 51 and 52, as shown in FIGURE 2. It will be readily apparent that the U-shaped member 55 serves to reinforce and brace the legs 51 and 52 so that the entire assemblage is rigidly held together. Extending from the rear of the leg cushion 50 is a rod 59 which is fastened, as by welding, to cross rod 58 and a second cross rod 63, which likewise is secured, by welding, to the extensions of legs 51 and 52. The rod 59 is reinforced by a pair of brace members 61 and 62 (the latter being shown only in FIGURE 3). The brace members 61 and 62 are welded to the rearwardly extending rod 59 and at their inner ends to the bar 58. The rod 59 extends through the aperture 48 in the support member 39 as best shown in FIGURES 2 and 5. The aperture 40 is substantially greater than the diameter of the rod 59. At its rearward outer end, the rod 59 is provided with a knob 64, which knob is slightly less in diameter than the diameter of aperture 40 to permit the rod 59 to be withdrawn from the supporting member 39 through the opening 40.

Because of the manner in which the foot rest is supported at the rear by the rod 59, and the supporting member 39, the arrangement of the foot rest is not only extremely simple, but also provides for a great deal of adjustability. Because of the fact that the aperture 40 in support 39 is greater than the diameter of rod 59, it is possible freely to move the rod 59, and the foot rest, with respect to the support 39, and hence with respect to the seat cushion 15. In other words, the rod 59 and the supporting member 39 provide a universal joint action. Furthermore, because of the member 39 being freely slid able along the rod 28, it is possible to shift the foot rest transversely with respect to the seat cushion 15. Thus, as best shown in FIGURE 3, a combination of transverse and tilting motion of the foot rest is possible. Not only does this lend a high degree of flexibility to the position in which the legs of the occupant may be placed, but it also permits the foot rest to be moved quickly to a position in which it does not interfere with one sitting down in, or arising from, the chair.

If at any time, it is desired to dispense entirely with the foot rest, this is simply done by removing the rod 59 from the support 39, by lifting the rod 59 slightly and withdrawing the knob 64 through the opening 40. Normally, the knob 64 prevents this from happening due to the weight of the foot rest holding the rod against the lower edge of the aperture 40 so that the knob 64 constitutes an obstruction to the removal of the rod 59.

Since the supporting member 39 is formed of a plastic material, such as polyethylene, it is possible to employ painted surfaces on rods 28 and 59 without the sliding of rod 59 and support 39 injuring the paint.

While the rod 59 has been shown as a straight rod over the portion projecting rearwardly from the leg cushion, the rod may be provided with a plurality of displaced portions 68, 6?, and 70, as shown in FIGURE 5. In order to avoid confusion with the other species, the rod in this case has been identified as element SQA. It will be readily apparent that the addition of the displaced portions 68, 69, and 7d makes it possible to retain the rod 59 in any of various positions with respect to support 39 to vary the spacing of the leg rest 50 from the seat cushion 15. With the species previously described, the rod 59 tends to assume a position in which movement of the same rearwardly is limited by abutment of the support member 39 against the junction of rod 59 with brace members 62 and 63. With the species shown in FIGURE 5, it is possible to held the foot rest substantially spaced from the seat cushion.

It will thus be seen that I have provided a very simple chair and foot rest construction permitting the maximum amount of adjustment both of the inclination of the seat portion of the chair and of the position of the foot rest with respect to the seat cushion. Furthermore, the foot rest may be readily removed at any time.

In the foregoing specification and in the appended claims, the term foot rest has been used to designate the portion 13. It is to be understood that, as explained above, it is the sitters legs rather than his feet that are 4. normally placed directly upon the support 13. Thus the term foot rest, as used, is to be construed as applying to such a rest, regardless of whether the sitters legs or his feet are directly placed upon the rest.

While I have shown certain specific embodiments of my invention for purposes of illustration, it is to be understood that the invention is limited only by the scope of the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. In combination: a chair having a seat portion; a supporting frame for said seat portion, said frame having a bar extending thereacross in the front thereof below said seat portion; a support member having a portion loosely surrounding said bar so that said support member is journalled on said bar and freely slideable along said bar across the front of said chair; and a foot rest, said foot rest having a leg support, a pair of spaced legs at the front of said leg support, and a single rearwardly extending rod supported by said support member and acting to provide support for the rear of said foot rest, said foot rest being freely adjustable transversely of said seat portion by reason of the slideability of said support mem her on said bar.

2. In combination: a chair having a seat portion; a supporting frame for said seat portion, said frame having a bar extending thereacross in the front thereof below said seat portion; an apertured support member having a portion loosely surrounding said bar so that said support member is journalled on said bar and slideable along said bar across the front of said chair with the aperture through said support member beneath said bar; and a foot rest; said foot rest having a leg support, a pair of spaced legs at the front of said leg support, and a single rearwardly extending rod extending through the aperture of said support member and acting to provide support for the rear of said foot rest, the diameter of said aperture being sufficiently greater than that of said rod to provide for substantial angular movement of said rod in any direction with respect to said support member so as to permit said foot rest to be disposed at any of various angular positions with respect to said seat portion, said foot rest being freely adjustable transversely of said seat portion by reason of the slideability of said support member on said bar.

3. In combination: a chair having a seat portion; a supporting frame for said seat portion, said frame having a plurality of legs including two front legs and a pair of metallic bars rigidly secured to each other and to said front legs to hold said front legs in the desired relative position, said bars extending across said frame in the front thereof below said seat portion; means for pivotally supporting the front of the seat portion upon the uppermost of said bars; means adjacent the rear of said frame for holding the rear of said seat portion in any one of several selected vertical positions to control the inclination of said seat portion; a support member having a portion loosely surrounding the lowermost of said pair of bars so that said support member is journalled on and freely slideable along said bar across the front of said chair; and a foot rest, said foot rest having a leg support, a pair of spaced legs at the front of said leg support, and a single rearwardly extending rod supported by said support member and acting to provide support for the rear of said foot rest, said foot rest being freely adjustable transversely of said seat portion by reason of the slideability of said support member on said bar.

4. In combination: a chair having a seat portion; a supporting frame for said seat portion; an apertured support member secured to said frame at the front of said chair and below said seat portion; and a foot rest, saidfoot rest having a leg support, a U-shaped rod having its legs rigidly secured to the under side of said leg support at the front thereof to form a pair of front legs, and a rod rigidly secured with respect to the U-shaped rod and to the underside of said leg support and extending rearwardly away from said leg support, said rearwardly extending rod being inclined downwardly with respect to said leg support, said rod extending through the aperture in said support member to provide support for the rear of said foot rest and to hold the rear end of said foot rest in a position such that said leg support is inclined downwardly toward the front thereof to support the legs of the occupant of the chair at a comfortable angle with respect to the seat portion, and the diameter of said aperture in said support member being sufiiciently greater than that of said rearwardly extending rod to provide for substantial angular movement of said rod with respect to said support member in any angular direction so as to permit said foot rest to be freely disposed at any of various angular positions with respect to said seat portion.

5. In combination: a chair having a seat portion; a supporting frame for said seat portion, said frame having a plurality of legs including two front legs and a pair of metallic bars rigidly secured to each other and to said front legs to hold said front legs in the desired relative position, said bars extending across said frame in the front thereof below said seat portion with the front of said seat portion resting upon the uppermost of said bars; an apertured support member having a portion loosely surrounding the lowermost of said pair of bars so that said support member is journalled on and freely slideable along said bar across the front of said chair; and a foot rest, said foot rest having a leg support, a plurality of legs rigidly secured to the under side of said leg support at the front thereof, and a rod rigidly secured to the under side of said leg support and extending rearwardly away from said leg support, said rearwardly extending rod being inclined downwardly with respect to said leg support, said rod extending through the aperture in said support member to provide support for the rear of said foot rest and to hold the rear end of said foot rest in a position such that said leg support is inclined downwardly toward the front thereof to support the legs of the occupant of the chair at a comfortable angle with respect to the seat portion, and the diameter of said aperture in said support member being sufficiently greater than that of said rearwardly extending rod to provide for substantial angular movement of said rod with respect to said support member in any angular direction so as to permit said foot rest to be freely disposed at any of various angular positions with respect to said seat portion.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 294,973 Deppen Mar. 11, 1884 478,247 Valentine July 5, 1892 512,204 Miles Jan. 2, 1894 694,538 Eddy Mar. 4, 1902 713,628 Garrett Nov. 18, 1902 866,316 Watson Sept, 17, 1907 2,096,169 Friesner Oct. 19, 1937 2,458,185 McDonald Jan. 4, 1949 2,553,122 Weatherson May 15, 1951 2,751,970 Smith June 26, 1956 

1. IN COMBINATION: A CHAIR HAVING A SEAT PORTION; A SUPPORTING FRAME FOR SAID SEAT PORTION, SAID FRAME HAVING A BAR EXTENDING THEREACROSS IN THE FRONT THEREOF BELOW SAID SEAT PORTION; A SUPPORT MEMBER HAVING A PORTION LOOSELY SURROUNDING SAID BAR SO THAT SAID SUPPORT MEMBER IS JOURNALLED ON SAID BAR AND FREELY SLIDEABLE ALONG SAID BAR ACROSS THE FRONT OF SAID CHAIR; AND A FOOT REST, SAID FOOT REST HAVING A LEG SUPPORT, A PAIR OF SPACED LEG AT THE FRONT OF SAID LEG SUPPORT, AND A SINGLE REARWARDLY EXTENDING ROD SUPPORTED BY SAID SUPPORT MEMBER AND ACTING TO PROVIDE SUPPORT FOR THE REAR OF SAID FOOT REST, SAID FOOT REST BEING FREELY ADJUSTABLE TRANSVERSELY OF SAID SEAT PORTION BY REASON OF THE SLIDEABILITY OF SAID SUPPORT MEMBER ON SAID BAR. 